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Daily G.K. - Top Stories

18 Oct 2020

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

PM Jacinda Ardern Wins Second Term

  • Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern turned speaking from the heart and smiling through adversity into a winning formula for blowout re-election as New Zealand`s leader.
  • Now Ardern, who made a name for herself by crushing COVID-19 in the country and healing the nation after a massacre of Muslims by a white supremacist, faces a challenge to show her leadership extends beyond crisis management and kindness.
  • Her Labour Party won a landslide victory in the general election, a resounding mandate that ushers in New Zealand`s first purely left-leaning government in decades and may allow her to form a single-party government.
  • The win is also the reward for Ardern`s leadership through a series of extraordinary events that shaped her first three-year term: the gunman`s massacre of 51 worshippers at two Christchurch mosques and the eruption of the White Island volcano, which killed 21.

India Ranks 94 in Global Hunger Index

  • India ranked 94 among 107 nations in the Global Hunger Index 2020 and is in the 'serious' hunger category with experts blaming poor implementation processes, lack of effective monitoring, siloed approach in tackling malnutrition and poor performance by large states behind the low ranking.
  • Last year, India's rank was 102 out of 117 countries.
  • The neighbouring Bangladesh, Myanmar and Pakistan too are in the 'serious' category but ranked higher than India in this year's hunger index. While Bangladesh ranked 75, Myanmar and Pakistan are in the 78th and 88th position.
  • Nepal in 73rd and Sri Lanka in 64th position are in 'moderate' hunger category, the report showed.
  • Seventeen nations, including China, Belarus, Ukraine, Turkey, Cuba and Kuwait, shared the top rank with GHI scores of less than five.
  • GHI score is calculated on four indicators -- undernourishment; child wasting, the share of children under the age of five who are wasted-- who have low weight for their height reflecting acute undernutrition); child stunting, children under the age of five who have low height for their age reflecting chronic undernutrition; and child mortality -- the mortality rate of children under the age of five.

China Passes Amendments Outlawing Insulting National Flag

  • The Standing Committee of China's congress passed amendments to a law that will criminalise the intentional insulting of the national flag and emblem, after anti-government protesters in Hong Kong last year desecrated the Chinese flag.
  • According to the newly amended National Flag and National Emblem Law, which will take effect on January 1, those who intentionally burn, mutilate, paint, deface or trample the flag and emblem in public will be investigated for criminal responsibility.
  • The law also states that that national flag must not be discarded, displayed upside down or used in any manner that impairs the dignity of the flag.
  • The revised law will also apply to offices in Hong Kong and Macao that are set up by the central government.
  • The amendments to the law were proposed after anti-government protesters in Hong Kong last year trampled on the Chinese flag, prompting an outcry in China.
View Month Wise

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

World's Biggest Zinc Smelter Project in Gujarat

  • The Hindustan Zinc Limited is to invest Rs. 10,000 crores to set up the biggest zinc smelter in the world. The smelter is to be set up in the industrial region of South Gujarat. The smelter is capable of producing 300 kilo tonnes per annum.
  • The State Government of Gujarat has signed Memorandum of Understanding with the Vedanta group to set up the smelter. The project will provide employment opportunities for the youth in the state. Also, the smelter to be erecter will be the lowest cost smelter in the world. The facility is to be constructed in an area of 415 hectares.
  • Smelting is the process by which heat is applied to extract a metal from its ore. The process is used to extract copper, iron, silver, zinc and other base metals. During heating, apart from the metal, several other chemical components are emitted. Of these, sulphur dioxide and hydrogen dioxide nauseous and pollute the atmosphere.
  • The waste products of smelting are released into water supplies. Such waste contains lead and chromium that are hazardous to plant and animal life.
  • Acid rains are common in the regions of smelting plants. Acid rain erodes land and makes it unfit for cultivation.
  • The workers in the smelting plans are exposed to toxic chemicals. Inhalation of these chemicals harm the worker health and productivity.

Jet Airways' CoC Approves Kalrock Capital-Murari Jalan's Resolution Plan

  • Jet Airways' committee of creditors (CoC) on Saturday approved the resolution plan submitted by the consortium of UK's Kalrock Capital and UAE-based entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan under the insolvency resolution process.
  • The plan was approved after the conclusion of the e-voting on the proposal.
  • The resolution submitted by Murali Lal Jalan and Florian Fritsch has been duly approved by the CoC under Section 30(4) of the Code as the successful resolution plan.
  • The grounded airline had received bids from two consortiums, one comprising UK-based Kalrock Capital founded by Florian Fritsch and UAE-based entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan.
  • The other bid was submitted by the consortium consisting of Haryana-based Flight Simulation Technique Centre, Big Charter of Mumbai and Abu Dhabi's Imperial Capital Investments LLC.
  • The RP is in the process of filing an application in accordance with section 30(6) of the Code for approval of the said resolution plan by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and intimation of the same shall be given to the members as required, the statement to the BSE stated.
  • The defunct airlines had extended the deadline for voting on the resolution plans as only half the lenders had submitted their votes and the remaining had sought time to submit their votes.
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SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

BepiComlombo Spacecraft Reaches Mercury in its Journey Towards Venus

  • The BepiColombo Spacecraft was launched jointly by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and European Space Agency to planet Mercury. The space craft has now crossed Venus on its way to Mercury.
  • The mission BepiColombo consists of two satellites launched together. They are Mercury Planetary Orbiter and Mercury Magentospheric Orbiter. The two satellites will separate on arriving Mercury.
  • The mission will perform study of mercury. This will include characterisation of magnetosphere, magnetic field in both interior and on the surface of the mercury.
  • The spacecraft Bepicolombo was launched on Ariane 5 rocket.
  • It will arrive Mercury in 2025.
  • The Mission is a part of the Horizon 2000+ Programme of European Space Agency and was the last mission of the programme.
  • BepiColombo characterises the solid and liquid cores of mercury. It will also perform magnetic and gravitational field mappings. Using the Gamma ray and neutron spectrometers provided by Russia, the mission will verify existence of water in the polar craters of Mercury. These craters are in permanent shadow from the sun's rays.
  • Objectives of the Mission
  • To study the origin and evolution of Mercury
  • To investigate the exosphere of Mercury, its composition, dynamics
  • To study the magnetosphere of mercury
  • To verify Relativity Theory of Einstein
  • The BepiColombo was named after the scientist Giuseppe Bepi Colombo. He was an engineer, mathematician and scientist from Italy. He proposed the Interplanetary Gravity Assist. It was first used in 1974 on Mariner 10 mission. The technique is now frequently used by planetary space crafts.

Europe Steps up Contributions to Artemis Moon Plan

  • Thales Alenia Space in Italy will produce Europe's two major contributions to the Lunar Gateway, a US-led space station around the Moon.
  • TAS will build two pressurised sections: one where astronauts can live, and the other on which refuelling and telecoms equipment can be mounted.
  • The UK-arm of TAS will provide the refuelling hardware.
  • The Gateway is intended as a staging post for astronauts as they shuttle back and forth to the Moon's surface.
  • At 40 tonnes, the station is a key part of the American space agency NASA's Artemis project, which is targeting a human return to the lunar environment 50 years after Apollo.
  • The first landing is envisaged for 2024, although it will be later in the decade before all the sections of the Gateway are in place.
  • TAS's iHab and Esprit modules will most likely be launched on separate Falcon Heavy rockets from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.
View Month Wise

SPORTS

Ultimate Table Tennis Postponed

  • The fourth edition of Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) has been deferred to 2021 in view of the Covid-19 pandemic.
  • The Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) authorities and the UTT management took the decision to postpone the event, keeping in mind the safety and well-being of the players and other league stakeholders.
  • With the sporting world gradually moving towards resumption of live action, the fourth season of UTT next year will be held next year.
View Month Wise

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

Assam Government-run Madrassas to be Converted into High Schools

  • According to Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, all government-run madrassas and Sanskrit schools will be closed down by the Assam government and the notification to this effect will be issued in November.
  • The State Madrassa Education Board, Assam will be dissolved and all the government-run madrassas will be converted into high schools. New admissions will be held for the existing students as regular ones. The final-year students will be allowed to pass out but those taking admission in these schools in January next year will have to study as regular students.
  • The Sanskrit schools will be handed over to Kumar Bhaskarvarma Sanskrit University and these will be converted into centres of learning and research where Indian culture, civilisation and nationalism will be studied.
  • The step has been taken by the government to ensure that students get a regular education under the Secondary Education Board of Assam (SEBA). The examinations conducted by the madrassas and the Sanskrit tols are different and their students do not appear for the matriculation examination conducted by the SEBA.

Govt. Extends Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla's Tenure

  • The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the extension in service of Bhalla as Home Secretary beyond the date of his superannuation, i.e. November 30, 2020 up to August 22, 2021.
  • He would have superannuated next month.
  • Bhalla, a 1984-batch IAS officer of Assam-Meghalaya cadre, was in August 2019 appointed as the Home Secretary.
View Month Wise

DEFENCE

CRPF Inks MoU with DRDO and IIT Delhi

  • The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with IIT Delhi and Defence Research and Development Organisation to find technological solutions to the operational challenges faced by the organisation.
  • There are 500 officers associated with CRPF. The MoU will enable these officers to undertake short-term courses in DRDO and IIT Delhi and also pursue research work. These trained officers are to act as tech advisors to the CRPF.
  • Also, the chosen officials will participate in joint research projects with these institutes.
  • The main objective of the agreement is to equip the officers with knowledge to tackle challenges and meet operational needs and enhance competitive advantages.
  • This will be a big boost to the force as they are designated as the lead internal security force in the country. Also, they are deployed in anti-Naxal operations in Left-Wing Extremism states. They are also deployed in the Kashmir valley to counter terrorism.
  • The Central Reserve Police Force is one of the armed forces of India. They operate under Ministry of Home Affairs.
View Month Wise

PERSONS IN NEWS

Seema Mustafa New President of Editors Guild of India

  • Seema Mustafa, the Editor of The Citizen, has been elected as president of the Editors Guild of India.
  • The announcement came after the results of an online election held earlieron this monthe were declared.
  • In the same election, Hardnews editor Sanjay Kapoor was elected as general secretary. Anant Nath, the Editor of The Caravan, was elected unopposed as Treasurer.
  • Mustafa succeeds Shekhar Gupta, the Editor-in-Chief of The Print, while Kapoor and Nath will take over from A. K. Bhattacharya, the Editorial Director of Business Standard, and Sheela Bhatt, the Contributing Editor of Rediff.com, respectively.
View Month Wise

AWARDS AND HONOURS

Aishwarya Sridhar First Indian Woman to Win Wildlife Photographer of the Year Award

  • Aishwarya Sridhar became the first Indian to win the Wildlife Photographer of the Year award. The announcement was the Natural History Museum in London.
  • It is the 56th year of the prestigious award.
  • Aishwarya Sridhar's photo won among 50,000 entries from over 80 countries across the world. Only 100 images were shortlisted and she won the award for her photograph in the Behaviour Invertebrates category.
  • The image is named 'Lights of passion' and was captured using one of Canon's premium DSLRs -- EOS-1DX Mark II.
  • Aishwarya said that being the first and youngest girl to win this award from India in the Adult category, its a huge honour for me to receive this award.
  • Aishwarya Sridhar is a wildlife photographer, writer and filmmaker by profession. She is also a conservationist.
View Month Wise

GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES

Yogi Adityanth Launches 'Mission Shakti' Campaign

  • Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced that there will be a separate room now for women complainants in 1535 police stations across the state. The UP CM made the announcement at the launch event of 'Mission Shakti' programme for women security in the state.
  • The mission aims to reduce crime against women in Uttar Pradesh.
  • Expressing sadness over the Balrampur rape-incident, Yogi said that the incident was very unfortunate and that's why he decided to launch this mission from Balrampur. He said, ''To pay homage to the victim of a very unfortunate incident, I decided to kick-off Mission Shakti campaign from Balrampur & I'm extremely delighted to launch this programme. Mission Shakti aims at guaranteeing security & respect for every woman in the state.
View Month Wise

GENDER/ HEALTH/ EDUCATION

India to Become Free of Trans Fat by 2022

  • The Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan announced that India has set a target of becoming trans-fat free by 2022. This target is year ahead of the target of World Health Organisation. The announcement was made when the Minister presided over an event organised by the food safety and Standards Authority of India. The World Food Day is celebrated by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation every year.
  • The Eat Right Movement of Food Safety and Standard Authority of India aims to promote safe and healthy food. This movement along with "Eat Right India" and "Fit India Movement" will act as a game changer in shifting India's diet focus towards nutritious food. Also, the other schemes such as Jal Jeevan Mission and Swachh Bharat Abhiyan will improve the health of the Indian citizens.
  • Alongside the World Food Day celebrations, the Minister also launched the "Eat Smart City" challenge of FSSAI. The challenge is to be conducted in partnership with the Smart City mission. It aims to create right food habits in cities of India.
  • The FSSAI is committed in reducing the production of Trans fats to less than 2% by 2022.

DRL Gets DCGI's Nod to Conduct COVID-19 Vaccine Phase 2/3 Human Trials

  • Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd. and Russian Direct Investment Fund, Russia's sovereign wealth fund, received approval from the Drug Control General of India to conduct an adaptive Phases 2/3 human clinical trial for Sputnik V vaccine in India.
  • As per the the city-based drug maker this will be a multi-centre and randomised controlled study, which will include safety and immunogenicity study.
  • Earlier in September 2020, Dr. Reddys and RDIF entered into a partnership to conduct clinical trials of Sputnik V vaccine and its distribution in India.
  • As part of the partnership, RDIF shall supply 100 million doses of the vaccine to Dr. Reddy's upon regulatory approval in India.

Israel Launches PhD Sandwich Programme

  • The Council for Higher Education, Israel launched a scholarship programme for international PhD students to study in Israel for a duration of up to one year as part of the doctoral studies – a 'PhD sandwich program'. Under the initiative, international PhD candidates will get the opportunity to further their doctoral research through a unique academic experience in Israel, while collaborating with leading scholars and scientists.
  • Selected students will get an annual scholarship of 80,000 NIS per year (Rs. 17 Lakh approx). If a scholarship recipient is in Israel for less than one year, the scholarship amount will be determined based on the actual time the scholarship recipient studied in Israel. Scholarships will not be awarded to doctoral students who spend less than three months at the host university, as per the rules.
  • Through this initiative, Israel seeks to attract top young recent PhD graduates to take on a postdoctoral position with leading scientists and scholars in Israel on cutting-edge research in all fields of science, social science and humanities.
View Month Wise

ART AND CULTURE

Long-lost' Medieval Monastery in Gloucester Rediscovered

  • A"long-lost medieval monastery has been discovered by archaeologists in Gloucester city centre.
  • The remains of the 13th century Carmelite friary have been found beneath a demolished multi-storey car park.
  • Historians knew roughly where Whitefriars had stood, but its exact location was a mystery.
  • The dig, ahead of redevelopment work as part of the regeneration of the city's King's Quarter, took place in July.
  • City archaeologist Andrew Armstrong said it was "very exciting" finally to reveal the exact location of "this long-lost friary".
  • "For around 300 years, Whitefriars played an active part in Gloucester and produced some notable friars, including Nicholas Cantelow (or Cantilupe) in the 15th Century.
  • "Seeing and documenting this site will serve to underline, and recognise, the place of the friary in the city's history."
  • Archaeologists from Gloucester City Council and Cotswold Archaeology carried out the dig on the site of a recently demolished multi-storey car park on Bruton Way.

Kala Sanskrit Vikas Yojana

  • The Ministry of Culture has issued guidelines to conduct cultural events under the central sector scheme "Kala Sanskriti Vikas Yojana".
  • The guidelines will benefit artists and institutions by providing alternative services through digital platforms. Also, the Ministry has granted permission to conduct events on virtual mode.
  • Guidelines
  • The Utilisation Certificate must be submitted. The statement of performance or targets fixed and achieved should be issued.
  • Kala Sanskriti Yojana is an umbrella scheme under which several other programmes are launched.
  • The Kala Sanskriti Vikas Yojana mainly focuses on Gandhi Heritage Sites Mission, National Mission on Monuments and Antiques and National Mission on Manuscripts.
View Month Wise

TOURISM AND HOTEL INDUSTRY AWARENESS

SATTE GenX Plays A Catalytical Role For Tourism Revival

  • SATTE, South Asia's largest travel and tourism exhibition, made a successful virtual debut with the launch of SATTE GenX, first virtual travel exhibition of the region. The inaugural edition witnessed the participation of 122 exhibitors and welcomed over 6600 visitors who got an opportunity to network and conduct business virtually. The inaugural ceremony witnessed the presence of a host of dignitaries from across the global tourism markets and was attended by over 2000 live audience.
  • This two-day virtual expo brought together some of the world's leading destinations and companies, eminent speakers, knowledge forum and some unparalleled networking opportunities. Travel and tourism industry have been the most impacted sectors due to the ongoing pandemic. During these challenging times, SATTE with its new digital initiative, is offering an opportunity to the stakeholders of the industry to conduct business from the location of their choice in order to connect with the target audience. SATTE GenX is the industry's broader plan to gradually reopen the travel, tourism, and hospitality sector. For SATTE GenX, we have got a strong support from international and Indian exhibitors, buyers, associations especially at a much-needed time and this speaks volumes of how this sector is keen to bounce back.

TAAI Appoints Interim Chairman for UP and UK Chapter

  • Sunil B. Satyawakta from Luncknow was appointed as interin Chairman by Travel Agents Association of Indiafor Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand Chapter.He joins Gayatri Khanna (Secretary) and Swati Dimri (Treasurer) as Office Bearers of the Chapter. This development took place via a virtual meeting in the presence of the TAAI National President and the National MC. Satyawakta will retain this position until next association elections that will take place in November 2020.
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